All 22 263 voting stations around the country were opened from 8am to 5pm on Saturday and Sunday for people to register to vote or verify their details.

There were no incidents or distractions reported during the two-day registration on November 9 and 10 in Estcourt and surrounding areas.

Registration went smoothly over the weekend.

Initial trends point to a relatively high turnout by young people.

Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) Municipal Electoral Officer (MEO) Vusi Magubane says this turnout from the youth was unexpected.

He stated that going to schools and informing pupils about the importance of their vote, played a role in this turnout.

According to Mr Magubane the working relationship between political parties was very good.

There were no reports of intimidation and registration stations were well organised.

One of the questions people asked were: why can’t they register via the internet to avoid long queues at registration stations?

They also wanted to know the specific date for general elections next year.

The peak times were after lunch.

However, it was a quiet Sunday at the Papkuilsfontein Hall.

People came in one-by-one to register or check if they are already registered.

The IEC MEO said they are uncertain about the actual figures of the new voters but indicated that both days were successful.